PARIS (dpa-AFX) - The U.K. stock market opened on a firm note Thursday on positive cues from Wall Street where stocks soared higher yesterday on some upbeat economic news, but pared its gains swiftly, with U.S. futures indicating a weak start for Wall Street later in the day.
Concerns about the impact of a partial U.S. government shutdown, trade war jitters and Brexit uncertainty are also forcing traders to refrain from making significant moves at higher levels.
The FTSE 100 is down 43 points or 0.64% at 6,642.99, off an early high of 6,727.51. On Monday, the index ended lower by 0.52%.
Micro Focus, Dixons Carphone, AstraZeneca, BT Group and BP are down 2 to 5%.
Among the gainers, Fresnillo is rising 3.7%, Sage is moving up 3.2%, 3I Group is advancing by nearly 3% and RBS is gaining about 2%.
In the currency market, the Pound is flat against the dollar, at $1.2634 and was down by about 0.3% against the Euro, at Euro 1.1091.
Against the euro, sterling is down 0.3% at €1.1091.
Among other markets in Europe, Germany is down sharply despite a slightly higher start. The French market, which opened on a high note, retreated as well, but recovered again on support at lower levels.
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